Set Them Free
by FallenAngel218
Summary: Holding it all in is easy; when it all comes pouring out, all at once, is when everything gets overwhelming.


_**Notes:** Written in loving memory of my friend Karolin, who lost her battle with Leukemia at the age of 31._

 _ **Warnings:** Season 13 finale spoilers!_

The stars were beautiful in the middle of the night. Tim loved to look at them. He didn't need a telescope to appreciate their beauty; a clear night sufficed quite nicely.

Tonight, he sat against a tree in Rock Creek Park, with a bottle of cheap wine sitting on the grass next to him, half-empty. The sky was full of stars – hundreds of thousands of them. He gazed skyward, picking out the constellations he could remember.

Orion was the first constellation he spotted. Not far from it, he could make out Draco. He reached for the bottle as he looked, unscrewing the cap and blindly sipping the cheap pinot grigio.

Tim had been stargazing since he was a child, and it had always been a solitary experience, until he started working at NCIS. He started sharing it with his friends, when they needed a place to go and just sit quietly. He took a sip of wine and looked up at Draco, and remembered a time he'd brought Ziva here. She'd needed the quiet more than ever.

* * *

 _…2009…_

 _Ziva gave McGee a look of confusion when he pulled the car into the parking area at Rock Creek Park, and killed the engine._

 _"This is where you are taking me?"_

 _"Come on. I want to show you something."_

 _He got out of the car, and she followed suit. She followed him onto the grass, and across an open field. There were random trees and bushes littered all over the field. She followed him around several overgrown honeysuckle bushes, until he finally stopped at a lone tree. He sat down underneath it, and leaned against the massive trunk._

 _"Come sit down."_

 _Ziva sat next to him._

 _"What did you want to show me?"_

 _"Look up."_

 _Ziva brought her eyes skyward, and gasped at the celestial sight before her. There were thousands, probably millions of stars, twinkling intermittently._

 _"It is beautiful," she finally said, unable to take her eyes off of the night sky._

 _"I come out here when I want to be alone," Tim confessed. "Sometimes, I just need to clear my head. Drinking a hole in my stomach isn't going to do anything but increase the cloudiness. Coming out here, just enjoying the stars, the sounds of nature, helps me relax. I wanted to share it with you tonight."_

 _Ziva gazed up at the night sky in silent reflection. Saleem had kept her prisoner for months. He'd done things to her that she could never tell another soul. Ever. Since she'd been back, she'd tried to get back to her normal life, but nothing was the same._

 _She wasn't the same. Not anymore._

 _She didn't realize she'd been crying until she felt McGee gently brush a stray tear from her cheek with his finger. He put a caring arm around her, and she fell into his shoulder, and let the tears silently fall._

* * *

He'd picked out six more constellations before a shadow to his right caught his attention. He moved his hand toward the gun holstered at his waist, ready to shoot if need be. The shadow came closer, and the beam of a flashlight broke through the honeysuckle bushes as someone emerged from behind them.

"There you are."

Abby sat down next to him. He knew she would come here to look for him before looking anywhere else. This stargazing spot was no secret.

"Delilah called me in a panic when she woke up and you were gone."

Tim nodded silently.

Abby noticed the wine.

"You've never come here with that before," she said, indicating the bottle.

"It's different this time."

"How?"

"It just is."

"Tim—"

"I know what you're going to say Abby… you're going to tell me that everyone is sad about Ziva's death and Tony leaving, and that I have people who care about me. Am I right?"

Tim felt the sting of her slap on his cheek before he knew what hit him. He dropped his gaze, ashamed.

"I'm sorry, Abby. I was out of line."

"Damn straight you were." She picked up the bottle of wine and moved it out of his reach. "It's awesome that you choose to come here to clear your head when you're upset, but you don't need wine to mess it up again."

Tim gazed up at the blanket of stars. He knew Abby was right. Buying the wine was an impulsive decision on his part.

"I pushed through when we heard about Ziva, and when Tony chose to leave, for his daughter, I supported him. I still do. It's just- I'm sick of losing friends, Abby. I can't do it anymore."

A tear escaped his eye and slid down his cheek. Abby slid over and leaned her head on his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Show me the constellations, Timmy."

He smiled and wiped the tears from his eyes. She hadn't called him that in years. He put an arm around her and pulled her in close.

"Orion is over there," he said, pointing toward the Northeast. "Not far from him is Draco." He traced the pattern in the stars, to show her what it looked like.

They sat there together, picking out constellations, and creating their own. They named a star after each of their fallen friends, and connected them into a constellation, which Abby dubbed, "Fallen Angels."

The bottle of wine lay in the grass, forgotten.

 **THE END**


End file.
